


False Hope

by TopazShadowwolf



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, F/M, Implied/Referenced Suicide, No fluff to be found, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Violent Thoughts, no happy ending
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-20
Updated: 2018-05-04
Packaged: 2018-10-08 06:50:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,379
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10380954
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TopazShadowwolf/pseuds/TopazShadowwolf
Summary: After the human left the underground, Sans is left trying to piece his life back together with those who remain. As time goes on, decisions are made about what monster kind should do next, and how best to escape to the surface. But if they do get there their freedom, what will happen?





	1. Life

**Author's Note:**

> This stemmed from an idea in my head that wouldn't leave me alone. The story and its chapters will be short, but hopefully leave an impact. Feel free to poke me her or on my [tumblr](https://topazshadowwolf.tumblr.com/).

_I think the one thing that has bothers me throughout the years, and resets, is how quickly a life can disappear. You talk to a monster one day, and they are gone the next. Unlike humans, we don’t see a body to confirm it, just dust. And if the dust is blown away, then that monster is just gone. When a monster is missing, often they are assumed dead._

_So, can you imagine how it felt, searching all over and not finding my brother. I told him, asked him, “stay away from the human.” I should have made him promise. But we were in a hurry._

_Heh…_

_Naw, he is my brother; I should have kept a better eye on him. I know what he was like, and should have known he would have pulled a stunt like that._

_Anyway, when I did find him, all that was left was his battle body and what dust the wind hadn’t carried off._

_I’ve hear that hindsight is 20/20. If I could do it all again, well, I never would have taken my eye sockets off him. But that’s most likely a lie, since I doubt this was the first time._

_I know about the resets. Not to the extent I would like, but I’m aware of their existence, and feel their influence. Often a feeling a_ _déjà vu lets me know if I had done something before._

_When it happened this time, that_ _déjà vu, was when I was looking for my brother. This feeling came over me. It was a sick, falling feeling that nagged at me until I finally understood what it meant. This was something I had done before. And not only had I done it once before, I had done this multiple times._

_How many times did I promise myself not to let him out of my sight?_

_How many times did I have to go out looking for him?_

_How many times was he dead?_

 

* * *

 

“i’m sure you’ve heard by now, y’know, about what happened with the human?” Sans sat with his back the Ruin door. It was the only place he thought of going to find some amount of comfort. Grillby’s was now a bleak, dark, place. The owner decided to stay in Hotlands with family, instead of returning after the human left. And without his brother around, Sans didn’t want to go home.

The house was just an empty space, void of happiness.

He could have tried visiting Alphys. There were still some animes they were going to watch, but Undyne has been there a lot. Right now, he wanted to avoid the fish monster. She was angry. Understandably, but it won’t help his mood. He was angry too. Guilt also plagued him, as there was more he could have done, and he was sure she knew.

“lady?” Sans looked back at the door.

“I heard…,” she replied with a soft tone.

Sans felt his eye sockets darken. “a lot of bad stuff happened, but i still watched the kid as promised.”

“I’m sorry,” she said.

“don’t be, it’s not your fault. you didn’t know they would be like that.”

“I shouldn’t have made you promise to watch over them,” she continued.

“S T O P,” Sans’s voice echoed. He then fell silent, his tired soul ached with sorrow, he didn’t mean to talk to her like that, “i’m sorry, that was wrong of me…”

“No, it’s alright. I think we are both reeling from what happened.”

“i, uh, hoped i could tell a joke or two to lighten the mood. but i can’t think of any,” Sans buried his hands into pockets and hunkered down into his jacket.

“That’s perfectly fine. I suppose my mind is drawing a blank as well,” she was always so understanding. “My dear friend,” she started, and his eye sockets welled up with tears, “you sound so tired. Why don’t you rest?”

He shivered, not from the cold, but from something else that chilled him. It was a loneliness that tore at him. If he rested she would leave and he’d be alone, he feared that, “i’m fine.”

“What if I promise to stay with you?” She asked. He wondered about that, and how she also felt. There was a chance she also didn’t want to feel the uncertainty that came with isolation. For how long she had lived alone, it seemed foolish to think that she didn’t want the company, even if it was silent.

“we can try that…,” Sans said as he looked at the door. He leaned against it, trying to get comfortable; snow slowly drifted down from above, and lightly covered him like a blanket. The tiredness within him took over, and he drifted off to the sound of her humming a song.

When he woke again, she was there as promised. They talked and sat in silence for most of the day. They would have stayed like that all day, but she insisted that he leave to get food. He gave in and got up, leaving to find something to eat; he used a shortcut to keep himself from walking the long, quiet distance from the door to town.

Snowdin was mostly abandoned, though a few people had returned. One who used to be a regular at Grillby’s called to Sans, and he just offered a wave in response before entering the shop, he wanted to avoid talking. There was no one there to run the little store, just a sign to let visitors know that she restocked and will be back again once everything settled back down. There was a box set out, asking people to comply with an honor system.

He walked behind the counter and grabbed a few cinnamon bunnies, and put them in a bag for easy carrying. Before he left he made sure to place some money in the box to pay for what he took. They should be enough to last him a few days, then he won’t have to leave the door again to see this place. All it did was bring back memories he wasn’t ready for.

Returning to the door, the lady welcomed him back. And that’s how he spent his days. She was a constant companion, talked with him, comforted him, made sure he did a few things to take care of himself. He would have stayed like that for the rest of his miserable life, but one day she asked him something he wasn’t expecting.

“My friend, by the sound of the snow fall you are describing, I fear you may end up being buried,” she said.

“naw, it isn’t that bad, just more than normal,” Sans brushed off his jacket.

“Why don’t you come in here? No need to be alone in the snow.”

“but i’m not alone, i have you with me,” he chuckled.

The lady giggled and then said, “as true as that is, why not come inside?”

He thought about it for a moment, then looked back at the door, “sure lady.”

Moving out of the way, he waited for the door to open. When he walked in, he glanced around. It was dark and hard to see, but he did smell some smoke; which hinted she must have had a fire to keep herself warm by the door at one point. When his eye lights settled on her, he smiled at the woman he had been talking to all this time. After looking at each other for a moment, they embraced. “Oh, my dear friend,” she wept.

Sans couldn’t help but cry into her shoulder as they stood there for a while. A burden lifted from his shoulders, but an unexpected exhaustion caused his bones to rattle from the effort of standing. In response, her strength became a support for him, keeping his tired body from falling. The large, paw like hands cupped both sides of his face and she pressed her forehead against his, “My dear, sweet friend… you need real food and sleep. Come,” she took his hand and started to lead him down the hall to the stairs.

“what about the door? are you sure we should leave it open like that?” Sans asked, and started to glance behind himself, when she pulled him close.

It took a moment before she replied, “I don’t think it will close properly anymore.”

She led him up the stairs and into her house. Glancing around, Sans couldn’t help but noticed how close it resembled Asgore’s place. From his chats with her, he knew that would be a touchy subject, especially now that the king was dead. Instead he just simply acknowledged who she was by saying, “never thought it was the queen i was telling jokes to.”

“I’m not the queen anymore,” she smiled down at him, “Toriel, or Tori, is fine.”

“heh, sure, tori,” he said, as the name rolled from his mouth with seemingly practiced ease. Did that mean he met her before? That he had called her that name before?

With his hand, still in hers, she led him to the kitchen to get food. He made himself a meal from her left overs, all the while she talked to him. They chatted about what life was like in the ruins, which is now quieter after the human left. There were now fewer monsters here, as well as everywhere else. He started to like the idea of living here with her, he felt done with the outside world. Too much had happened, too much was gone. The pure notion of waiting out the remaining time till reset here seemed like a blessing.

Once they finished talking, and he ate his meal, she led him to her room. Sans looked at the bed then her, “you sure?” It felt weird sharing a bed with her so soon after they met in person.

In response, she nodded and wrapped her arms around him, “I know you don’t sleep well. I want to help you have pleasant dreams.”

He hugged her back, and sought something from her, something that will help him carry on. It felt like what he needed was there, but just out of reach. Was it him? Was he just too closed off to really receive the support she wanted to give?

“Shhh,” she whispered, he hadn’t even noticed he was sobbing, “it’s alright. Just rest for now.”

Due to how high her bed frame was, he literally had to climb into her bed. Huddled down into the covers he closed his eye sockets and felt her cuddle up to his back. Had they been like this before? During a happier time, had they cuddled like this? The feeling of déjà vu was present as she nuzzled the back of his skull; but, with their current mood, it lacked the warmth he longed for, that should have been there.

When he woke the next morning, he didn’t feel her beside him. He quickly sat up, panic set in, “TORI?!” Was she gone too?

When he looked over toward the doorway he saw Papyrus standing there, who smiled at him. His brother walked closer and sat on the bed, as Sans stared in disbelief. “BROTHER,” the voice that he missed so much said, “YOU CAN’T STAY HERE, AND YOU KNOW IT.”

“but,” Sans started, though he didn’t know what to say.

“I’m afraid he is right,” Toriel said as she walked into the room, “Now that you are looking and doing better, it is time for you to start moving on with your life.”

Sans’s soul sank as his eye sockets filled with tears. He should have known. Papyrus and Toriel surrounded him in a hug. It wasn’t him being closed off that denied him the warmth and love he sought from Toriel last night, but the fact they are not dwelling in the same form of existence.

“I’M SORRY BROTHER,” Papyrus said, “I KNOW YOU ARE FEELING THIN.”

“heh, i feel like i’m just bones,” Sans chuckled and heard Toriel giggle.

“WASN’T IT ENOUGH THAT YOU TOLD SUCH BAD PUNS WHILE I WAS ALIVE?” Papyus yelled, but he was clearly smiling even though he was tried not to.

Once he had the strength to move again, Sans left the house and went back down the stairs. He saw the pile of dust near the doorway that was once his friend. He stared at it a moment, then looked at Toriel, “mind if i add some to pap’s scarf? i know it isn't a favorite thing of yours, but it's a way to…”

“Not at all,” she smiled kindly.

“bro?” Sans looked to his brother.

“IF YOU ARE ASKING FOR MY APPROVAL, THEN THE ANSWER IS THAT I WOULD BE HONORED TO SHARE MY SCARF WITH HER,” Papyrus said.

Sans bent down and picked up a handful, adding it to Papyrus’s scarf. Walking out of the Ruins, he noticed the door wasn’t open as he had thought he had seen the day before. Instead there is a large hole that is still smoldering. The smell of used magic and smoke hanging in the air even after all this time. No wonder he had been so tired, it would have taken many blasters, and a lot of magic, to make a way through the door.


	2. Anger

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sans visits Alphys.

_It is easy to just say I was angry. Because, yeah, I was angry. Still am, really, just a different kind. I don’t know if you’re aware of this, but there are various levels and strengths to that emotion. To say all anger is the same is like saying one color is the exactly like another. That orange is the same as purple because they both have red in them._

_I wasn’t even aware of that myself until that moment, since I’m, uh, not normally the type of monster to get mad. But what I felt in that moment was like being trapped in a well of rage; one that was so deep that I couldn’t see any light or feel anything else. I was trapped in a darkness that was different than the depressed kind I was used to. It took over my soul and mind._

_Oddly enough, it was Tori and Papyrus who keep me from slipping too deep. Sounds silly, I know. I mean, some would say the fact I saw and heard them was a sign that I had lost it. Even I question if I’m really “all here.” But all I know is, I could be worse off. Not the best answer, really. It’s all I got, though._

_I would have done better if they were alive and with me. But, apparently, that wasn't an option._

_How many monsters had to die?_

_Heh…_

_And I just sat by, as a passive observer._

_In case you’re wondering, watching all that wasn’t what kept me angry. It was the unending wait for the reset. Worse yet, knowing that I desperately want the one thing that I despised for so long. It’s cruel. Imagine wanting something that felt like poison, because you knew it could possibly make everything better in the end. Of course, it could also have made things worse..._

_Yeah, it was the waiting for the unknown that really got to me._

_I guess I still hold on to the notion that things could be better because it had been. There are these visions in my head, they leave the feeling that things had been happy once. That things could have been peaceful; but that wasn’t good enough for…_

_Well… anyway_

_I’m still angry._

 

* * *

 

The light from the screen was starting to hurt his eye sockets, but he didn’t care. Alphys needed this. They sat, marathoning some anime she had found recently. From what she could tell, it was based off some actual human history, though loosely. Sans would hazard a guess that the history ended at some of the names and places. But, Alphys liked it, so he endured it, silently thankful she didn't have a full season. Once they finally finished the episodes she found, they moved on to something more “futuristic.”

Sans glanced at Alphys during the third episode of it, unsure if he should say what was on his mind. Honestly, he was proud of himself for staying awake this long. Normally he is fast asleep by now, and just kept Alphys company by being here and available to talk when she wanted.

Lately, sleeping has been hard, his dreams have been distorted and cruel. Toriel helped when she could, giving him some peace at night, but not every night is peaceful. And it doesn't help he still won't return home, even when Papyrus asked him. Instead, he had used random side caverns in Waterfall. They aren't comfortable, but he never had trouble sleeping anywhere before. When he finally decided to visit Alphys, she invited him to stay at the lab, and he agreed.

Still, there was something bothering him about this anime; besides, it might make her laugh. With an exaggerated sigh, he looked at Alphys, “y’know the science behind this is wrong, right?”

Alphys threw her hands up, started ranting, and shoved him. All Sans could do is snicker, catching enough words to tell she was saying it was about more than the science, and he was being short sighted getting hung up on that. Like normal, she noticed what she was doing and paused, “um, s-sorry, I think I spoiled t-the mid-season… umm… sorry….”

“it’s alright, al,” Sans smiled. They continued watching, Sans added comments now and again, getting the yellow reptilian monster to laugh or yell at him.

As the last episode of the first season ended, they sat in silence again. Alphys must have known there was something on his mind, as she waited in silence. Looking over at her, he paused, undoubtable he hated breaking their fun, but he knew this couldn’t last forever, “so, uh, how’s undyne?”

Alphys looked down, “she’s r-really mad. She w-wishes she could’ve d-done more. I… I think y-you should go t-talk to her.”

Sans looked away, and his eye sockets dimmed, “i don’t think i have the strength for that right now.”

“I-I wish you would…,” Alphys sighed, “she needs s-someone… y-you do too. You know? Someone w-who’s, um, not like me….”

“al,” he put his head in his hands, “i just don’t know how to face her. or anyone living. and what am i supposed to do now?”

Alphys leaned over and hugged him, “I have some n-notes that you should, um, l-look at.” He looked back at Alphys after he forced his eyes to light again, knowing she doesn’t like the empty sockets. “I-I think i-if you look at them y-you’ll be able t-to do what I couldn’t.”

Sans sighed, “sure al.” He shifted to hug her back, “sorry i wasn’t here for you.”

“I-it’s alright… I was… um… well, I…,” Alphys fell silent.

Eventually he left, knowing he will be back later to look over the notes Alphys mentioned. He had a few himself, as well. Perhaps they will combine, and he could use them to achieve their freedom. And then what?

As he made his way to the capitol he stopped and stared at the CORE. During the time in the Underground, two great minds were robbed from monster kind. It was wrong. Both Alphys and her predecessor deserved more than what they got. One was forgotten, and the other was so ignored as a person that she let her sadness consume her. Maybe if he had done more with her, helped her out more than what little he did, Alphys might still be here.

But she will be back again when the human resets, right? It only made sense. After all, that’s how it always worked before. Though, why it felt like they were taking so long to reset was the question. This waiting was agonizing. It made him want to scream. But he didn’t, because a part of him accepted that this was not permanent. That eventually it would all end and he will wake up with little or no memory of this.

All the time he spent in Snowdin’s cold masked a chill that existed in his soul. Even as he stood there, while the heat of Hotlands absorbed into his bones, that frozen section did not warm. Pulling his hood over his skull, he ambled his way through a shortcut, bypassing New Home and went straight to the castle.

The throne room doors, closed before him, were an ominous presence. Behind them sat the first living monster, he would have talk to, since the human left. That notional alone terrified him. The last several weeks he had learned he preferred to talk with the dead. With them he didn't have to explain how he felt, they knew.

It would be easier to not care. To go back and stay with the dead, and not have to deal with the living anymore. That idea sorely tempted him, and he almost turned back. Two different hands touched his shoulders, one on each side, reassured him that he should continue forward. He recognized the large paw of Toriel and the gloved hand of Papyrus. With closed his eye sockets, he soaked in their comfort before he stepped forward, using a shortcut instead of opening the door.

Undyne was there, on the throne. The crown looked just as heavy on her head as it did Asgore’s. The flowers in the throne room were still alive, but clearly not as well tended as Asgore kept them. But then, the boss monster had a way with plants that no one else seemed to possess. Walking further in, he saw her slowly raise her head, and once they looked each other in the eye he stopped.

No words needed to pass between them, they both saw the emotional pain within each other. The same torturous feeling, that all but tore them apart, echoed in their eyes. Standing up from the throne, Undyne smiled and walked forward, “I wish you would’ve gotten here sooner, nerd.”

“i, uh, needed to straighten some things out in my head,” Sans said with a shrug.

Undyne looked at him quietly then nodded, “I understand. And I suppose my first month of ruling was a whirlwind of activity.” There was silence from her for a moment before she shook her head, “I saw you on the monitors in the lab. Not sure who you were talking to… but I think you needed them more than me.”

Unsure of what say, Sans just looked at her; he let the silence between them say what couldn’t be said.

“so, uh, what’s the plan?” Sans asked, tired of being the subject of discussion.

“If possible, I don’t want to collect souls. We don’t need humans to free us,” Undyne said, her grip on her spear tightened till her knuckles blanched. The weapon had an appearance like the trident that Asgore owned. “I want us to kill any human that falls down here, still. And when we escape we will hunt down that murderer.”

Understanding that plan, Sans nodded.

“well, there are some notes in the lab that might help with that. alphys was nearing an answer, and maybe i can finish what she started.”

They talked, and planned for a while, until they tired. Undyne encouraged him to stay at the castle. He accepted for just the night, and let her know he would spend the rest of his nights in the lab.

When he had a moment alone, he made a phone call to the human.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I thought about naming specific animes, but that's the kind of detail I'd be more inclined to use for The Door. What they were exactly watching wasn't important to this story, just that they were spending time with each other.


	3. Justice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Undyne talks about revenge.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Drip.

_The thing about the living is we only see things through our position. Most don’t stop and think about the bigger picture, and there is one. We just can't see it because our angle is wrong. Our perspective is only one brush stroke in a much larger painting. No less important, but miniscule in the grand scheme of things._

_Why am I talking about this? Heh, good question. The reason is justice is one of my prominent types of magic. Because of it, I can read people better than others, and I tend to look at things more objectively. See, those who aren’t objective have a far different view of justice. They skew it, alter it to fit their own needs._

_It's just what the living do, because we are emotional._

_Normally, I have no trouble keeping myself objective when it comes to justice._

_But with how angry I was, my own views became distorted, and I became obsessed with the notion of revenge. I tried to hide it from them, I know Papyrus and Toriel greatly oppose it. Thing is, I, uh, forgot they knew what was in here, my soul. They already knew how I felt and what I wanted._

_So, I guess I was letting them down, again, without even knowing it._

 

* * *

 

Sans looked over the notes, he had laid out, with tired sockets. He used the work table to lean against and supported himself. The only sound was an idle tapping as he fiddled with the pencil in his left hand. He had read these notes, and ordered them, during the past few days. Everything about it made sense; but there were gaps that Alphys could not fill. His own specialty should be able fix that, but it will take time.

Alphys was there beside him, and had helped him make sense of some of her research. A fair chunk of it was beyond his scope of studies, but with her help he was beginning to understand. Still, it was tiring work, and he hadn’t really slept, just dozed a few times. He leaned his head against his hand while struggled to keep his eyes focused; unsuccessfully, considering the words were a blurred mess.

“Maybe you should take a break?” Toriel said, placing her paws on his shoulders and nuzzling the back of his skull. He loved that soft feeling of her fur and nose. Why won't a reset just happen, and let him have a chance to be with her in person? A chance to really feel that sweet sensation.

“maybe i should,” Sans yawned, then glanced over at the other scientist, “do you mind, alphys?”

“N-not at all, you’re c-clearly tired and, um, I c-could use a b-break too,” Alphys fidgeted a little then smiled.

Something about that tickled his funny bone. “i wasn't aware the dead need sleep.”

“THIS COMING FROM THE MONSTER WHO TOLD ME THAT IF HE DIED ALL HE WOULD DO IS SLEEP,” Papyrus spoke up. “AND KNOWING YOU, YOU’D FIND A WAY.”

That comment caused Sans to snicker, and Toriel laughed, “I must agree with your brother, my dear.”

“A-anyway, I, um, don’t need t-to sleep, but, um… just an a-anime break,” Alphys said with a weak smile.

Chuckling, Sans got up, “sure, al, i’ll put something on i can sleep through.”

After some discussion on which, he put a show on and sat on the couch between Toriel and Papyrus. He didn’t remember much past the intro song since he drifted off to sleep, cuddled up to Toriel.

He would have slept a few good hours, but was interrupted by someone poking him in the head. Cracking his eye sockets open, he found he was hugging a sofa pillow, and above him was Undyne. With a yawn, he sat up then glanced at the TV, it was all static as the VSH tape had ended. When Undyne used to find him asleep, at his sentry station, she would get throw a fit. But right now, she looked concerned, which felt weird, “heya, i, uh, thought i’d take a nap since the words stopped makin’ sense.”

“That's alright, anyway, may I see the notes?” Undyne asked.

“yeah, sure,” Sans got up and shuffled over to the work bench. On the way, he yawned and stretched to force tiredness out of his groggy skull.

Undyne pick one of the sheets of handwritten notes up. Sans watched as she looked it over for a moment, her expression perplexed. She then set it down and picked up another, then repeated the process again. “Just to make sure, which ones were Alphys’s again?” Undyne watch Sans from the corner of her only eye.

“all of them, except for what's in that notebook,” he watched as Undyne picked up the mentioned notebook, “that's my… uh, notes of her notes, i guess.”

Undyne looked over his notes, her ear fins drooping slightly. “Sans, the handwriting is all the- you know what, never mind,” she then turned to him, brightening, “seeing you napping only reminded me of what I came here to talk about.”

Sans tilted his head as she clapped her hands on his shoulders, too tired to react any more than that. “I’m going to hire you some brainiacs to help you out,” Undyne said with a large, toothy grin.

The idea of others being around bothered him. When others are around, he knew he should not talk to the ghosts. The living wouldn't understand, “uh, i think i’m fine, actually.”

With a shake of her head, the fish monster sighed. “Look, Sans, there is more I need your help working on. And…,” she glanced at the notes, frowning slightly, “well, they want to help too. But they're not strong. They’re…”

“weak like me,” Sans finished.

“I wouldn't quite say that,” she said nothing else after that.

“yeah, i excelled when it came to being weak,” she started to protest, but he shoved his hands in their jacket pockets, “anyway, what else did you want me to work on?”

Redirected on a new topic, Undyne grinned again, ear fin perking, “weapons, I want us to be ready to go to war. Also, a way to track down that human. Surely their high Level Of Violence could be traceable or something, right?”

Sans paused, thinking, “sure, something should work.”

“Good! That murderer won't know what's coming to them! I’LL DESTROY THEM FOR WHAT THEY DID!”

With a shrug and wink, Sans said, “i’m sure you will.”

Undyne went on for a while. She described how she wanted to avenge her friends, and the rest of the monsters who died. Based on a movie she saw, she knew what she wanted to say too. “Hello, my name is Undyne, you killed my friends, prepare to die.” All of her plans sounded like too much effort to Sans.

After she left, Sans sat in the lab in silence, save for an insistent dripping sound. It annoyed him, but not to the point to make him get up and figure out which sink it was coming from. He could feel the others near, looking at him, but only dark thoughts were in his skull. Thoughts that, before that human, never would have entered his mind; nor, would he have entertained thinking about them. They were from a corrupt viewpoint of justice.

Drip.

“Maybe you should get some fresh air? You have been closed off in this lab for a while,” Toriel offered.

Drip.

When Sans didn't respond, naturally Papyrus jumped in, “COME ON, BROTHER, YOU CANNOT JUST STEW THERE ALL AFTERNOON! A REFRESHING WALK WOULD DO YOU GOOD… AND MAYBE GET THOSE MURDEROUS THOUGHTS OUT OF YOUR HEAD?”

Drip.

“I-l’d say they w-were more, um, vengeful,” Alphys muttered.

Drip.

“That's enough, you two,” Toriel softly chided, then turned back to Sans. She placed one of her paws on his shoulder. He flinched, as it felt different. It was hot, as if wretched in fire magic. “Sans, dear?”

Drip. Drip.

When Sans looked back at Toriel, what he saw froze him in place while causing the magic in his frail frame to stir quickly, ready to fight or run. When before, Toriel looked almost alive and healthy, she now was gravely injured.

...

His attempt to move away but ended in him falling from the stool he was on. He scrambled back on his feet and looked around.

DRIP.

Papyrus stepped forward and said something, but Sans couldn't get himself to focus on the words. Not when his brother held his own skull.

DRIP.

Alphys stood there, soaked, her lab coat dripping, dripping, dripping…

D R I P . . .

Sans felt himself tremble, he must be rattling but the sound was drowned out by the-

**D R I P . . .**

“sorry, i need to be alone,” Sans moved with haste to the exit.

“SANS, I DON’T THINK THAT IS A GOOD IDEA,” Papyrus said, but Sans refused to look back.

“I’m inclined to agree with your brother,” Toriel added, but he kept his vision on the door as he didn't want to see her like that.

“please, i just…,” Sans reached lab entrance, “i need a moment.”

Once outside the facility, Sans leaned against the door. And there was silence. Nothing. No one around. It was both relieving and terrifying, and the utter mix of these feeling caused his bones to continue to rattle so much he could hardly stand.

Lying on the ground, he pulled his hood up and over his skull. With the world blocked out, he focused on just being. Adrenaline, or the monster equivalent, still surged through him, causing his body to continue shaking uncontrollably.

He was afraid to go back in the lab, worried they out still look the same. What had he done to cause that? Was it his-

“Howdy!”

The new, painfully cheerful, voice caused Sans to flinch, and he lifted the hood enough to see a face. It smiled down at him in a sickeningly sweet manner, bright yellow petals helped to oversell the joy filled display.

“Wow, you look terrible,” the face and voice mimicked concern.

His brother told him about a talking flower.

The flower stared down at him. It gave Sans time to speak, but he just filled that space with hushed rattling. In response, the flower grimaced, “wow, you really did lose it. Are you even there?”

When Sans continued to not reply, the flower sighed, “i’ll just put you out of your misery. For once, consider this an act of mercy.”

He heard shifting dirt from vines, and Sans saw the flower summon a handful of seed shaped bullets.

A vine grabbed one of his legs as Sans summoned up bones defensively. They sliced through the vine, freeing him. And the rest formed a protective wall, which guarded him from the bullets. There was a hum followed by the thunderous burst from two summoned blasters, aimed at where the flower had been.

When the dust settled, the flower was gone. Sans doubted the flower was gone for good, just for now. Perhaps for the rest of this timeline. With a sigh, Sans stood up and ineffectively dusted off his clothes. Perhaps his friends were right before, he needed to talk a walk and get some fresh air. Besides, he knew of some leaderless spiders that may come in handy.

When dealing with a web of information, it is best to have professionals.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> D r i p .


	4. Displaced

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> SANS, ISN'T THAT A...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's been a while, been working on the other stories. But, hey! We are approaching the end of this one. Two more chapters to go.

_I guess I should have been angry at myself for, y’know, letting them down like that. I mean, they were my friends, brother, and… well, heh… Anyway, I didn’t feel angry at myself about it at the time. I was already angry at myself about other things. So, I just turned that feeling to the person I was already, uh, ‘enraged’ with._

_That’s more of an Undyne word, but, mad doesn’t describe how I felt anymore. I want revenge, and don't really care how I get it._

_Back to what I was talking about, well, I wasn’t thinking clearly enough to understand what all was going on with me. I mean, was I going crazy? Was I just obsessed? But, I think anyone would be angry in my situation… heh, the whole remainder of the underground is._

_I feel like I’m getting off track._

_The point is, I displaced any additional bad feelings on the same target. It was just easier that way, and you know me. The less work the better._

_So, my thoughts turned to how I could beat Undyne to the human who murdered my brother and… tori._

_Getting the spiders on my side was easy enough, I’d bought enough donuts from them over the years that they knew me. So, I convinced them to be my spies. Sure, I could trace high LOVE like Undyne. Figuring out how to do that took a while, and I found a way. But that is slower than a_ web _work of spiders. Especially when the spiders wanted revenge themselves, and would rather see me be the winner at the end verses Undyne._

 

* * *

 

Flowey never bothered him again, and Sans was fine with that. And he quickly figured out, that if he kept his thoughts from being so dark, his ghosts or visions wouldn’t reflect that. It wasn’t easy, because he wanted nothing more than to kill that human who murdered them; but, he knew that he didn’t want to see… that… ever again.

When he did want to plot his revenge, he would make some excuse to them about why he wanted to be alone. It was clear Toriel wasn’t buying it, and Papyrus had caught on too. Sans wasn’t sure about Alphys, but she wasn’t an idiot, she most likely knew.

As for crafting Undyne’s weapons, well, that took some more effort. More than he really cared to put into the project. But at least he had a good starting point. His own Gaster Blasters seemed like something that could be recreated and altered for the use of other monsters. When he presented the idea to Undyne, she jumped off her throne, grabbed Sans up by his ribcage, and spun him around while telling him what a ‘wonderful nerd’ he was. When she did finally set him down, he needed a moment before moving as the room was still spinning.

Once he got back to the lab, and employees, he got to work. He really didn’t like having staff hanging around. It was nice for bouncing ideas off someone, but he’d rather just do that with Alphys. More than once now, when he thought he was alone with the late scientist, someone else would interrupt and ask if he was okay.

Sans always answered that he was, but a few times he wanted to say “you just caught me talking to someone you can’t see. what do you think?” While Toriel did agree that would be funny, she still chided him, telling him not to take his anger out on them. She reminded him that they are only trying to help. And, of course, his brother agreed. Naturally, he didn’t want to let them down more than he already had, so he behaved.

Alphys was far better at this than he was, or any of the new guys. It just frustrated him more that she was so underappreciated. And though he doubted her cameras would come in use, he still left them per her request, just in case. Which turned out to be a good decision.

“SANS?” Papyrus spoke up. Sans had been working with Alphys in his office, figuring out how to adapt Blaster magic he had into something others could use.  The two were on a roll, but he didn’t consider Papyrus an interruption. Papyrus was his younger brother, and important. Paps could never been an interruption, just an interlude from his current thoughts.

“yeah, bro?” Sans asked, turning to look as his brother.

“ISN’T THAT A HUMAN?” Papyrus was pointing a finger at one of the monitors. On the screen, sure enough, was a human child.

“O-oh, yes Papyrus, that is a h-human. S-sans, maybe you should i-inform U-Undyne?” Alphys replied.

Sans just sat there staring at the monitor. What did this mean? That was a different human, a new one, not the one with dust on their hands. Could a reset happen how? Was getting things back to normal now hopeless?

“Sans, dear,” Toriel was there, hugging him. It wasn’t fair. He wanted to really hug her back. To REALLY feel her warmth, and not this false reality that either his mind imagines or these specters are able to project.

“thanks, tori,” Sans finally said, reaching for his phone.

“I AGREE WITH ALPHYS. WE SHOULD INFORM UNDYNE, CAPTURE THE HUMAN, AND THEN… MAKE FRIENDS?”

“sounds like a good idea, bro. why don’t you stay here while i work on that, huh?” Sans said while not looking up. He quickly found Undyne in his contacts and typed out a message.

 

*human just left ruins.

 

“Sans, what are you planning?” Toriel asked, she was giving him a I-know-something's-up look. But he did his best to ignore it.

“i’ll be back, alright?” And with that Sans took a shortcut to the woods just outside the ruins. He could see the child further on down the path, tentative, scared, and hesitant with each step. Sans was fine with this. Their LV was still low, not a speck of dust on them, so they must’ve gotten through the Ruins without killing a thing. Shame really. Well, if he caught the human off guard, killing it will be easy and unavoidable. His attack maybe weak, but a target with their defenses lowered is easy to kill.

He’ll just approach them, all friendly like, wait for them to shake his hand, then end it.

“Sans! You promised!” Toriel apparated in front of him.

The human was getting closer, and while kiddo can’t hear Toriel, Sans would be heard. Not wanting to give himself away, he kept his voice hushed, “tori, the last human killed you. shouldn’t that nullify the promise?”

“Does it?” she asked in that stern tone that leave Sans knowing the answer.

No, according to her, or some subconscious part of his mind, he was still under contract of that promise. Sans shoved his hands in my pockets and sighed, “fine, but undyne is just going to kill the kid anyway, y’know.”

“WHY WOULD UNDYNE DO THAT?” Papyrus asked from behind, surprising Sans.

“bro!” Sans winced and looked over at the human, the boy didn’t notice he was here; yet, seem to have heard something. “pap, what are you doing here?” Sans tried to demand the best he could in a whisper.

“I KNOW YOU SAID I SHOULD STAY AT THE LAB, BUT WHEN TORIEL LEFT, FOLLOWED BY ALPHYS, I THOUGHT MAYBE I SHOULD TOO.”

“al?” Sans looked around, and there was Alphys, hiding behind a tree, watching the human.

“Sans, please, the human hasn’t hurt anyone, don’t let Undyne hurt him,” Toriel pleaded.

“she’s queen, tori, there’s only so much i can do,” Sans rubbed his skull, feeling frustrated. To add to all this his cell phone made a ‘dinging’ sound and he took it from his pocket to look.

There was a message from Undyne, and he remembered he let her know about the human. Of course, he did that with the intent on beating her here, dispatching the human himself, and leaving before she arrived. But of course, that wouldn’t be good enough for the dead. Now he was staring at a message from Undyne.

 

*WHERE IS IT?! I’LL TAKE CARE OF IT!

 

“Sans, please?” Toriel pleaded.

“I… I NORMALLY AM ONE TO AGREE WITH UNDYNE, BUT ON THIS MATTER, I DON’T THINK MURDERING THE HUMAN IS A GOOD IDEA,” Papyrus added.

“alright, alright… just… just give me a moment to think,” this was going to give him one nasty skullache. If not just dealing with the specters, then hearing Undyne yelling at him, for protecting the human, will finish him off.

“I… I-I, um, have an i-idea, if y-you want to h-hear it, that is,” Alphys said quietly, as if they human could hear her.

Sans phone dinged again, it was Undyne, he opted to ignore the message for now, and looked to Alphys, “what’s your idea, al.”

“M-maybe, you should s-say you n-need the human, to, um, s-study it’s s-soul?” Alphys said, or more accurately asked.

After some thought, Sans shook his head, “it is a nice idea, al. but that doesn’t say why i need him alive. we could easily just-”

“Sans, please, I don’t want to hear it,” Toriel said, looking distraught.

“I-I only studied the souls, a-and I n-never got far,” Alphys again tried, “m-maybe we c-could get further with a l-living human s-specimen?”

Sans phone dinged twice in a row, looking at the messages it was clear Undyne was getting impatient with the wait. It was the best he had at the moment, so he nodded to Alphys while typing, ‘wait, i have an idea that you won't like.”

It took some convincing, and Undyne yelling at him later, but the human was now safe in the lab, munching on popato chisps. Indeed, his earlier assessment was correct, as Sans’ skull hurt so much it was making him nauseous. But, at least, Toriel and Papyrus were happy, Alphys as well. The late scientist hasn’t shut up about how cool and unique this “human specimen” is, and wondering what new “human histories” they had seen.

“Sans! P-play some anime f-for the human!” Alphys was practically squealing with excitement.

“alright, just keep it down,” Sans shuffled over to the human, who was staring at him with a suspicious look. Fine, whatever, let the human think he was weird, and talking to himself. He didn’t care anymore. All he wanted to do was take something for his skull and lie down.

“come on, got something for you to watch,” Sans said, offering a hand for the kid to hold.

The human, not wanting to fall for the same trick twice, looked at the hand for a whoopee cushion first. Seeing it was clear of a repeat of practical jokes, the kid took his hand and they walked from that room to another. “okay, here ya go, here’s a blanket and pillow if you get tired too. i’ll be one room over sleeping, if you need me,” the human just stared at him, silently. “you following?” Finally, a nod, good.

“Oh, oh! H-how about this one, i-it is a good children’s a-anime, so is this one,” Alphys said, pointing out several video tapes.

“hey kid, you know how to work one of these?” Sans glanced at the human who again nods.

“cool, so, uh, i’m just going to set out a few, only watch them, alright?” he asked without looking at the human. Alphys pointed out her suggestions and he grabbed them, glancing at the covers only briefly, and he was happy he did. One of them looked… questionable at best. Shooting Alphys a dark glare, he set it back, “not that one. besides, that’s more than enough tapes.”

He asked the kid which they wanted to watch first from the stack, but only got a shrug. With a sigh, he grabbed one of the tapes and put it in, “there you go, kiddo.”

Once alone he downed some pills for the pain and curled up in his makeshift bedroom, pulling the covers over his head to block out as much light as possible. As to how much agonizing time went by he had no idea, but his phone dinged. Cursing under his breath he reached for it to check. Great, Undyne wanted him.

Getting out of bed, he checked to see how the kid was doing. They seemed fine, so he told himself not to worry. Taking a shortcut to the throne room he found Undyne sitting there waiting for him.

“Sans, you sure you need the human alive?” She asked for…

“for the sixteenth time, yes, i do. if anything, a living human is easier to get determination from than just a soul,” and that was a load of bull. Souls are much easier to harvest, but he doubted Undyne knew that.  “is that the only reason you asked me here?” He asked, though sounded more like a whine at the end.

“No, I wanted to talk to you at the barrier about what I have planned so far.”

With a shrug, Sans started walking in the opposite direction, “see you there,” he said. She started to protest, but he didn’t care right now. The less actual walking he had to do, the better. Once in the room he regretted his decision.

His eye sockets widened at the forlorn sight before him. Mighty but broken, intimidating yet beaten, Asgore stood there, looking down at Sans with sorrow and unending regret. Unsure what to do, Sans shifted back towards the exit.

“heh, h-hey there,” Sans started.

“Howdy, Sans, sorry things turned out this way,” Asgore said. Even dead, the boss monster towered over Sans. Seeing him here was a surprise, catching Sans off guard. Normally, he would have been able to shrug this off, yet, he couldn’t help feeling the late king was disappointed, or angry with him.

“uh, yeah, but, that was not something…,” he was going to say, ‘we could have predicted’, but that was a lie. He saw it coming in the old research. Maybe not fully, and this ending being **the** end, per say, but, it was all there.

“I failed as a king,” Asgore sighed, “But Sans, don’t let your hate blind you as it did me.”

“y-yeah, okay, sure,” Sans said, backing up again, this time bumping into something that caused him to jump.

“Sans? Are you alright? Geez, what’s wrong?” Undyne asked, forming a spear in her hands while looking around.

“it’s uh,” Sans said, looking back over at Asgore.

“My poor Undyne, I’m so sorry I left you like this,” Asgore said, reaching for his adopted daughter, who could never hear or see him again.

“heh, sorry, but, yeah,” Sans said and left the room, taking a shortcut in the process. Undyne yelled something after him, but that was lost as he disappeared. He sat in Waterfall, huddled in a dark room, save for the false stars above and the glowing flowers around him. His phone started dinging with messages from Undyne, and he silenced it, just wanting to be left alone.

 


	5. Wrongs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sans discussing wrongdoings and monsters go to war against humans.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I almost combined this chapter with the last one, as they are both short... but I think both deserve their own chapter. So... enjoy.

_The question is: is revenge the right thing. Y’know?_

_In the big picture, no it isn’t. I mean, hurting someone because they hurt you only means the person who originally hurt you will, most likely, hurt you even more next time. Just makes this horrid and confusing circle of pain. And worse yet, it causes more people to get hurt. Friends and family stand by, watching, and they get hurt trying to stop it from happening._

_But I can’t help but wonder, does it apply in this case? I mean… trying to force someone to reset could result in an even worse ending. Yet, it could make everything better._

_I remember hearing a long time ago that two lefts don’t make a right. Of course, I had to joke and say, “three do.” The words didn’t mean much to me then. Not that the meaning was lost on me; I understood what was meant. Just didn’t see why I should care. It didn’t feel like it applied to me or anything I was doing at the time. It was just this cute little saying that people would say to stop someone from reacting badly to another. But now, I understand it completely. Now it does apply. I’m thinking of my options, considering the choice I must make, hearing the voices of the others, and that little saying is just replaying in my head._

_Which, I guess, is why I’m wavering with my revenge plans. I mean, I still want it, but how do I go about getting it without upsetting my friends?_

_Which is silly, it’s not like they will remember. Even my dear brother won't remember. Heck, how much of this will I remember is debatable too, after all. So, it’s possible for me to go through with this and never feel any guilt from it. And yet, the pure notion that, without knowing it, Papyrus’s big brother will continue to let him down, is painful._

_Still, if my research is right…_

_Well, let’s just say, I have reason to carry out my original plan. I think you know the reason. You’ve got to know, you must understand that there is happiness for my bro out there, somewhere. So, killing a killer to force that killer to reset… Does that make it right?_

_Is it right to kill a murderer?_

_They did kill someone, in this case, a lot of someones, but does that make killing a killer the right thing to do? Objectively, revenge isn’t right. I have no right to play judge, jury, and executor. It would be different if I let Undyne do it. See, then it would be the law passing down judgment. That’d be different than me becoming like the killer I hate just to try getting my way._

_But normally, if you kill a killer nothing happens other than maybe some guilt or relief. Yet, this killer can reset. So, does making this wrong, after their wrong, make things right if they make things better? Common sense says, “no. killing like this is never right.” My objectivity says “no,” too. Y’know? Since murder is **wrong**._

_And yet…_

_I don’t want to wait for Undyne._

_I’ve been waiting too long for this reset…_

_I’m losing myself..._

 

* * *

 

Based on the levels of determination he could extract from this human, Sans doubted the boy could reset. It seemed reasonable to assume, then, that the power still remained with the other, the killer. So, it was just a matter of time, and thankfully it was not long before he had something that would trick the Barrier. It really was all because of Alphys’s help that he was able to make a breakthrough. She had all the answers he lacked, and thanks to his understanding of what she was telling him, they were able to work together to make a contraption capable of simulating seven human souls. It was complicated and took time to make, but still, freedom was achievable.

Revenge was achievable.

Once the project was done, he took it to the castle to finally see if it worked. Undyne didn’t want to just do a trial run. The Barrier could only be broken once, after all, and she felt all the monsters should be there to witness it. She had gathered all of monster kind, informing them that freedom is close at hand, and might be today. She told them that, whether this works or not, freedom will come, and humans will pay for their crimes against monsters. “Today, tomorrow, next week, next month, next year, it won’t matter. What will be important is that we will be ready, and we will win!” Undyne rallied monster kind. Which put pressure on him, though her speech left an opening for him to not be disgraced if it didn’t work for some reason. Still, with Alphys by him wringing her claws nervously, he couldn’t help but want it to work. So, as he prepared, he took care in making sure everything was right.

After setting the device, Sans started it and then backed up. The Barrier creaked, cracked, then shattered like a window being smashed by a rock. The natural light of the morning sun filtered in, lighting the cavern. It was so beautiful but far brighter and different than anything his sockets had grown used to. Sans squinted his eye sockets as he looked passed the opening to the world beyond. There were more mountains, trees, and sky as far as he could see. monster kind, behind him, cheered and rushed by him into the open air. He felt a hand on his shoulder as Undyne said, “Nice going, Nerd! You freed us! We’re all in your debt for this.”

“heh, it’s nothing undyne.” Sans started to shrug but felt Undyne’s grip on his shoulder tighten. He looked at her and saw she was about to say something when a member of the guard called for her.

The current ruler of monsters sighed while giving Sans’s back a pat that caused him to tip forward, but not fall. “Look, Sans, I’m being serious here. We’d still all be stuck down there if it weren’t for you. So, seriously, let me know if you need anything. Alright?” Undyne asked with a bit of forcefulness behind her words.

“sure thing, boss,” Sans lazily replied. He offered her a grin that she clearly was not satisfied with. She had that look, one that seemed to say she was worried about him, though he wasn’t fully sure why. Okay, yeah, he had started talking to Toriel, Papyrus, and Alphys more openly, but he didn’t make a big deal about it. So, he didn’t see the reason why anyone would think it was. Undyne was about to say more when she was called again. She sighed, turned sharply, and started barking out orders

With that, the Guard was mobilized and the war on humans truly started. Undyne’s wrath was quickly learned by all that were in her path, deserved or not. Monsters attacked the nearby towns in an organized and unmerciful manner. They easily took out unsuspecting humans with few injuries and barely any losses on the monster side. Sans was forced to sit out when it came to the fighting. Undyne reminded him he was too weak to fight, not that he minded. Papyrus didn’t need to see him fight, and it would upset Toriel as well. So, he watched from the sidelines as the attacks happened. He didn’t know if he liked these random attacks though. His wrath, unlike Undyne’s, was more focused on one, while she was willing to attack all humans. But he was willing to let her waste her time on hunting down every human. It gave him the time needed to send the spiders out to gather information, as well as time for them to work.

Once monsters had conquered that stretch of land, Undyne was prepared to track down high levels of LV. Most likely, other violent humans will hinder her progress. Which was fine for him, Sans just needed time to wait for the spiders to report back. With her tracking down every human criminal, he’d definitely get to the brother killer first. It was now just a waiting game, and he had far more patience than the average monster. Though that was fading fast.

The last issue was what to do with the human kid. The boy didn’t want to go back home, he was apparently scared of his parents. It seemed wrong for a child to fear their parents and knowing that bothered him. But, Sans still had no idea what to do with him. He didn’t want to send the kid off to some human town if it was just going to be the next target for a monster attack. Sans considered asking Undyne what she thought when Toriel said, “Why don’t you take care of him. You are both lonely, after all.”

“tori,” Sans started his rebuttal, but he was quickly interrupted by the eager voice of his brother.

“THAT IS AN EXCELLENT IDEA, SO LONG AS MY BROTHER CARES FOR HIM BETTER THAN THE PET ROCK,” Papyrus added with a bright smile.

Alphys went on about the anime they could all watch together, but Sans lost interest in the conversation. Fine, he’ll watch the kid. Not like it will matter in the end. Besides, there was no arguing with them once they got an idea in their heads. Right now, he didn’t have the energy to spare to try talking them out of this.

The next few days, the kid was always a step behind him as he worked on whatever projects Undyne needed him for. And she did come up with something. Though he suspected that some of it was busy work. She seemed to think she needed to keep him occupied so he didn’t just sit around and ruminate. There were a few times, when he turned sharply or took a step back, that Sans nearly stepped on the kid. If Sans were any taller, he’d think the kid was trying to trip him. When they had a chance, they would sit together and watch anime or read books. They seemed to have accepted that Sans either talks to unseen monsters or himself, as the kid never questioned Sans about that odd behavior. In the end, Sans was thankful for his “shadow.” At least it was someone living to talk to, even if he didn’t say much.

Asgore could be seen now and then, sadly trailing after Undyne. As bad as Sans felt for the guy, he had his hands full with the three ghosts, or figments, following him and a kid. So, he didn’t really feel like asking the past king to join his already formed group of spirits. Either way, it was just a game of patience, soon enough, Asgore will be alive again.

Sure enough, after two weeks of freedom, the spiders pulled through and he knew where to find the human he hated so much. He thanked them for their service and promised that things will be better soon.

That night he got the kid to go to bed early and asked Toriel, Papyrus, and Alphys to watch him while he was out. Toriel didn’t like what was going on and she watched him carefully, though she said nothing. If Papyrus or Alphys thought something was up, neither of them said anything.

As Sans started to leave he heard a voice behind him, “Sans?” There was so much worry and concern that it hurt Sans to hear Toriel say his name like that.

“yeah, tori?” Sans replied though he didn’t have the heart to look back at her.

“I don’t think you should be doing this…,” Toriel said softly and she moved closer to him. He saw her reach to put a paw on him. If she did, if he felt her touch him, he might lose his will to do this, and so he moved out of reach.

“it will all be okay,” he muttered, trying to hold back tears, “i’ll make it okay.”

“Sans, you don’t have to be the one to do this,” Toriel again, pleaded. But, Sans quickly left, tears seeping from his sockets as he retreated.

It’s not like she will remember…

No one will remember…

He’ll make everything better…

…

Right?

…

Thanks to the detailed directions from the spiders, he was able to get to the human quickly and undetected by the use of shortcuts. They were living on the outskirts of a small town, in their own house. Everything looked far nicer than the human deserved. Killers like them shouldn’t have all these nice things when others were left struggling with the pain they caused.

He wasn’t going to be careless. He doubted the spiders would give him false information, but he wasn’t about to kill someone based on bad intelligence. He walked up to the house and looked into the windows to check for the human. The first two rooms he saw nothing of interest. But in the third, he saw them.

… and they were not alone.


	6. Impatience

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And so it comes to an end...

Flowey

That flower had beaten him to the human and was trying to kill them. He could see the flower had them tangled in vines. He must have caught them unaware as he had a clear advantage and was now toying with the human like a cat with a wounded mouse. Had he not decided to make this a game, the human would be dead by now.

And Sans would have lost his chance to get revenge.

Sans felt his anger increase as that stupid flower had the audacity to try to steal this from him. With how long he had been planning this moment, he couldn’t let that happen. The human was for him to destroy. The flower was just as guilty and had no right to steal his justice. Too many times he had suffered from that plant’s cruelty. This was one thing he wasn’t just going to let the flower take from him.

All the rage he had been holding inside, every ounce of distaste for that plant swelled up within an instant. The magic within him hummed so loudly, drowning out all other sounds. In the darkness of the night, every object around him was bathed in an ever-changing cyan to yellow glow. Eye sockets narrowed as he shook so much his bones began to rattle, which formed the war song he was about to fight to.

He took a shortcut into the house raining bones down on the flower. Taken by surprise, Flowey yelled out and recoiled from the burn of KR. “You!” Flowey hissed as he raised up. The flower summoned up its seed bullets to throw at Sans while pulling up more vines to attack with. But Sans didn’t care, he was going to win this, one way or another. With the use of his magic, Sans stretched time to avoid each bullet and swing of the vine. Doing so cost him a lot of magic, but it was well worth the cost. He had plenty of magic within him. As lazy as he is, he never lacked power, just strength. To win this fight, and have enough power left to finish off the human he will have to make this quick.

The human was still tied up in vines, so Sans took the opportunity to form a box around them with blue bones. Not seeing what happened, as the flower’s focus was on Sans, Flowey ended up screeching in pain as he started to move those vines. Trying to end the burn he detached those vines form his main body. The flower looked at where the human was now struggling to free themself from the disembodied vines. Even if they did manage to free themself from those, they would still be trapped in a cell of bones. Flowey was clearly angry as he turned back to Sans and hissed, “No! They are mine, you stupid trash bag!”

Sans didn’t feel the need to say anything as he continued to attack, sending wave after wave of bones and blasters. At first, as if this were some joke, Flowey laughed at his attacks, “I already know how you fight, idiot!” But soon the flower found himself on the losing end. Sans attack patterns were different, disjointed, maddened, fueled by his rage and broken thoughts versus his normal calm, rational plans. The flower didn’t know where the next attack would come from or what shape it would take.

Flowey might think that the human was his, but Sans wasn’t going to allow it. He couldn’t allow it. HE WON’T ALLOW IT! He’d rather turn them over to Undyne than this flower who is just as murderous, just as cruel… just as soulless. It wouldn’t be an act of retribution if Flowey killed the human. It would be just an act of a murderer killing another murderer.

Where was the justice in that?

There was none, at least, none he could possibly see.

Finally, beaten and weakened by the onslaught of attacks, Flowey retreated, “FINE!” He snapped as he pulled himself down into the earth below the floor of the house. He then called up from under the floorboards, “But you BETTER finish them off, you hear me, smiley trash bag?! I hate this ending as much as you do.”

Victorious, Sans stood there, panting with dark eye sockets. He felt a laugh bubble up within him and he let it out. It didn’t sound like a normal laugh for him; nor, did he know what was so funny. Just that he felt the need to, and so he did. As he laughed he turned to the human who shrank back from him within their magic made cell. Their terrified face illuminated by the flashing cyan and yellow of his glowing eye.

Finally!

Finally.

Finally…

From within him, his magic started to build up as he prepared to slaughter them as he had in the hall. They were defenseless, an easy mark. He could kill them with ease like this. There was no need to arm them and go through another needless fight like he did with Flowey. Soon this will be over. This whole nightmare will be over.

“y’should have reset sooner, kiddo,” Sans growled while accenting the nickname with distaste.

Arms wrapped around him, stopping him. The owner of those arms held him tight while radiating such a feeling of sympathy and love, “Sans… this isn’t you.”

Toriel… why… why… why…?

“Please, Sans, I know you don’t really want to do this,” Toriel tried to plea to his kinder self. But he had killed that side of him off long before, or so he thought. Hearing her sorrow filled voice caused him to tremble. As Sans felt her love for him, more and more, his sockets fill with tears.

“i do tori, i do want to. why are you stopping me,” his voice started to quiver, and he raised his hands to cover his sockets. She wasn’t supposed to see him like this. This wasn’t right. Why did she follow him? “if i do this you’ll come back…,” Sans strained to say as his magic tightened in his non-existent throat. He ignored the confused look of the human as he tried not to sob. “i don’t know if you’re really there, tori… can you even tell me? are you just in my head or are you really a spirit following me.”

There was silence, but he could still feel her arms around him. He started to tremble as he relaxed his magic. While he kept the human trapped, he no longer felt ready to finish them off. With a long, shuddering sigh, he tried to calm his nerves. “i don’t know who i am, anymore,” Sans whispered.

“YOU’RE MY BROTHER,” Papyrus spoke up while placing a gloved hand on his shoulder.

“A-and my science buddy,” Alphys added in.

“You’re also my dear one, my love,” Toriel finally let him go so he could turn to face them.

“this isn’t fair,” he whimpered. He was now shaking so much his bones were rattling again. This time it was a sad tune that matched his inner turmoil. Why? Why did they have to come to stop him? He was so close to having them back, yet they were the ones to stop him. Didn’t they know how much he truly missed them? Were they so concerned with him making this moral choice they couldn’t let him go through with it? He felt so stressed with all these thoughts, he needed to move. As he started to pace back and forth he tried to put his thoughts in order.

“this isn’t fair,” he repeated as he stared down.

“Sans,” Toriel started but Sans turned to face her.

“N O!” He snapped then pointed to the human. “T H I S  I S N ‘ T  F A I R !”

With every bit of malice, he had in his soul, he glared down at the human with dark sockets, “don’t you see? don’t you know they don’t deserve this? why should they be happy after everything they did? why should they get to sit here and live in this house while you three are dead?!” He turned back to the three who looked at him with…

With sympathy.

“why? why are you looking at me like that?” tears rolled from his sockets. Why were they doing this?

He paused and looked down as he thought. So many thoughts were rolling around in his head. Thoughts of life, anger, justice, displaced anger, wrongdoings, and his newly found impatience. He couldn’t feel himself wait any longer for the reset.

“fine,” he said to the three before turning back to the human, “let me think about this.”

With his jacket sleeve, he cleaned the tears from his face and sockets so he could see clearer. The human was obviously terrified, as they should be. At MTT Resort, he had many audiences, but never a captive one. He chuckled and shook his head, “okay, tell ya what. i’m going to work through some thoughts out loud, and you’re going to listen.”

He started to pace again, trying to figure out where he should start…

Life seemed about right.

 He started, using a more serious tone than his normally relaxed voice, “I think the one thing that has bothered me throughout the years, and resets, is how quickly a life can disappear...”

 

* * *

 

_Basically, it all boils down to this. Do I kill you and force you to reset, or do I show mercy to someone who doesn’t seem to understand that concept? And don’t tell me you were just curious because curiosity doesn’t justify murder. Curiosity doesn’t mean you can ignore the lives in front of you. **Curiosity** doesn’t justify **cruelty**!_

_You can’t see them, right? Because, here they are, right before you, begging for your life when you killed them... how many times? You abused their trust in order to appease your **curiosity**. You ignored their feelings because you just believed they didn't have any. You crushed their lives because, in the end, they didn’t matter to you. Just your **curiosity**!_

_Just accept that you thought it was a game. That you saw our lives as a way to pass time. To you, we were merely a plaything to discard once you were bored. And even though there was the potential for a “happy ending,” you couldn’t even be bothered to give us that before abandoning us to this sorry fate._

_I’m so lonely, being tailed by ghosts and memories of my failings…_

_And it’s your fault._

_Did you seriously think that your actions would not catch up with you?_

_Did you honestly believe we were nothing or no one? That our lives didn’t matter?_

_I see them, begging me to spare you. Funny, huh? The ones you murdered over and over are now the ones pleading for your life. So, now…_

_What do I do?_

_Aren’t you **curious** to find out?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooooooh man... I really do hope you enjoyed this. Please, don't be afraid to leave me a comment or visit me on [Tumblr](https://topazshadowwolf.tumblr.com/).
> 
> I know, I left a lot up for you all do decide on yourselves, but I'd love to hear what you all think will happen. Will he show mercy? Will he not?
> 
> Big shout out to beta readers. Chapter 1-4 was beta read by [UpperStories](http://upperstories.tumblr.com/) and 5&6 were read by [ObsessedKatie](https://obsessedkatie.tumblr.com/). I greatly valued their imput.


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